The present invention relates generally to image processing, and more particularly to identifying objects of interest in a sample.
It is known to perform image processing on images of biological samples where different dyes are caused to reside on different portions of the sample, each dye residing on a particular feature that characterizes an object of interest. The sample is then illuminated and imaged in a manner that the different features of interest can be distinguished from each other and from the background. This typically entails acquiring separate images using the appropriate light sources, filters, and optical setup so that each image's particular type of feature appears recognizably.
It is also known that certain brightfield dyes, while nominally assumed to stain different portions of the sample, are not perfectly selective, and stain both features of interest and features not of interest. For example, a dye that is considered to stain nuclei will often also, to a lesser extent, stain cytoplasmic structures. Further, many of the dyes in common use are characterized by a broad absorption spectrum, and therefore objects stained with the dye may show up in images acquired with a different illumination scheme.